


Henry's Orders

by MEGAMILK



Category: Hello Charlotte (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Ending, M/M, Major Spoilers, Spoilers for HC3
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-05
Updated: 2018-03-05
Packaged: 2019-03-17 13:12:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,259
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13659681
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MEGAMILK/pseuds/MEGAMILK
Summary: There's a body bag.





	Henry's Orders

        "Where is ... my uncle?"

    Only an hour prior, Florence and the others had been hefting a body bag over their shoulders.

    Only an hour prior, Scarlett had been tearing her hair out and stifling sobs at the very idea of the one within _. She screamed and called him a monster._

    Only an hour prior, Bennett had downed two bottles of liquid soap in rapid succession in an attempt to suppress the **GUILT**  and _ELATION_.

    None of that was there now, no tears or bodies or nary a coherent thought. Instead, he had a fatherless, motherless, _uncleless_ little boy to tend to. Bennett tipped his head to look over his shoulder to gaze at the freshly-turned-teenager behind him and felt his vision swim dangerously.

    Felix stood at his shoulder at best but he always seemed larger because of the way he - _tried, at least_ \- to carry himself. He was foul-mouthed and angry and Bennett could clearly remember the time in which he feared the child. He wanted to fill his uncle's too big boots as soon as possible and the engineer mused that his dream wasn't too far off now, was it?

        "I don't know, Mr. Honikker!" The lie fell from his lips as easily as the smile that spread across them a moment later. His hair bounced as he rocked on the heels of his work boots and stared at Felix a little harder. The bags under the junior scientist's eyes were heavier than usual and he looked too tired to even level Bennett with a glare. "Do you want me to help look? Seven pairs of eyes are better than one!"

    Eyes flitter over the left side of his face and the blonde stares unflinchingly in return. It was unusual - downright insane - for him to joke about his condition but his mouth was dry and his thoughts were drowning and nothing was the same anymore. The child blinks a few times and it appears harder and harder for him to pry his eyelids apart each time. Felix stifles a yawn and his eyes watered.

    It wouldn't surprise him if the boy stayed up late contemplating his own (previously) unavoidable death, or perhaps even why it hadn't happened already. Now that he thought about it ... there hadn't been an ounce of hesitation to the boy's steps when he walked into the room. They both knew oh too well his extermination was timed down to the very second ( everything was to be recorded to be used during another trial ). Had he accepted his demise so readily that he hadn't feared what would happen when he walked into the lab? Didn't fear an ambush? A brutal beating or the cold sting of a syringe jammed into his throat? Maybe Huxley would've wanted him to use his chain--

    Maybe the tentative inquiry into the man's whereabouts had been all the hesitation Felix thought he could afford.

   There's a part of him that wants to shoo him off, to stave off the conversation he knows they'll have to have considering Huxley will not be returning. The other part wants to cajole him into sharing a bottle of soap and watching television until it's time to sleep, and then just sleeping on the couch together like they'd done once before. Or maybe in the tub - _like he had with Henry their first night in the house_ \- if it wasn't still full of vomit. 

        "Did you drink both of those?" Bennet follows the younger's gaze to the empty bottles in his hands. The guilt comes back, but its fresh and different and he offers an almost sheepish smile. "IDIOT! I thought I told you to cut back!" Felix scoffs, snatching the containers and attempting to gauge how much he'd drank. They were licked dry. Bennett looks away from the scolding look, unable to handle the worry in the boy's eyes. Nevertheless, he knows it better than the hate and betrayal and agony that'll fill them later.

        "...Why?"

    Why indeed.

    Why when Henry had given the order to terminate Felix Honikker did he rev up his chainsaw and split the man in two? He hadn't even given it much thought, it'd been purely instinctual. The worst part was Henry hadn't even looked _surprised_ by his actions. That smile that always seemed to grace his lips had only widened in response before he fell into two halves and was no more. 

    Why had a boy he'd barely been able to tolerate so long ago manage to override any loyalty he had to Huxley? Sure, he'd grown _fond_ of Felix, it was hard not to. The kid was cute and tried his hardest to win the approval of the man who'd created him. It was endearing and he was hard to hate. He tried to avoid people and any positive emotion or attention if it didn't involve his uncle, but Florence had gotten him to laugh and he himself had gotten him to play games on the couch together and _Charlotte_ \--

    Why had he chosen Felix over Henry? His partner in crime, mentor-- their _savior?_

        "Sometimes, days are a little worse than usual!" Felix looks surprised at his straightforward answer, lips parting slightly and eyes wide. For once, he looks like the child he is, one that's been told a secret; maybe the existence of Santa Claus or the Tooth Fairy. The childish wonder in the expression is so strong that Bennett can't help himself. He pats his head.

    Felix stares up at him, frozen. His lips are still parted and his eyes are going to roll out of his head at this point if they get any wider. Bennett laughs and swings an arm around the boy's shoulder and draws him into his chest when there's no immediate protest. Bennet pretends tears don't pool in his eyes as he buries his nose into reddish hair and inhales harshly. It smelled like chemicals and death. It smelled like home.

    They stand there in the eerily quiet lab and Felix is breathing raggedly into his chest and despite the fact that nothing can leak through his hazmat suit, it still feels moist and warm. Felix was smart. It wouldn't surprise Bennett if he already knew.

    But then why?

        "Get off me, fucker!" Felix finally shoves at him and doesn't meet his eyes once they part, cheeks as pinkened as his hair. Bennet isn't surprised by the reaction, but the blush is new. And so is the hand that suddenly grabs at his wrist violently. There's a sheen of dampness on the younger's face as he twists to turn away. "Let's go watch that shitty anime you like so much ... but no more soap. You'll fry your brain more than it already is and we can't have that. You'll use up all my supplies and time when I have to help you instead of working."

    Huxley, not that long ago, had asked him to make friends with Felix. It'd been a favor, not an order. Befriend Felix, his nephew, as a favor. Kill Felix Honikker, the failed experiment, as an order. Henry's orders.

    The only ones he'd ever gone against.

        "Alright!" Bennet cheered, using his free hand to fist pump. " _Kitty Kitty Time_ is great!" He didn't protest the absence of soap, instead, twisting in the boy's hold until he was the one grasping his wrist. Felix was thin and small. His own hand could curl around the boy's wrist twice over if he wanted. "C'mon! Maybe we can even catch  _The Edge of Tonight and The Search For Tomorrow_." 

**Author's Note:**

> Bennet looked so hurt by Felix's death that I wanted to try another option.
> 
>  **3/7:** i realized I had "Underage" checkmarked and im laughing my ass off at the idea of how many people ran from this


End file.
